I
was looking for ways to cut some of the fat in regular nut yogurt and
decided to use ripe bananas and nuts in about equal amounts. This worked
out wonderfully and as a bonus, eliminated the need for more
sweetener.

A
"fool" is basically a yogurt dish layered parfait style. Greek yogurt,
which is very thick, is traditionally used. This yogurt isn't that
thick as I've made it here, but could easily be thickened by draining
some of the liquid through cheesecloth.

In
a blender, puree the bananas until very smooth. Add the nuts (I used
cashews) and lemon juice and about a half cup water for blending. Puree
on high for several minutes, until smooth and creamy. Refrigerate for
at least a few hours. It will thicken quite a bit as it chills.

To
make the "fool," take half the yogurt and puree with a handful of
blueberries. In each serving bowl, put a spoon of regular yogurt and
another of blueberry yogurt, add a few whole blueberries to the top.
Garnish with a couple chopped walnuts and a drizzle of agave, if
desired.

Not all peas are created equal. There are "snap peas,"
which have edible pods, and "shell peas," which have inedible pods and
the larger peas inside are the parts used. This recipe calls for shelled
peas, which can be fresh or frozen. Frozen peas will work really well,
though they may not be raw.

ingredients

2 cups peas ($1.75)

1 avocado ($1.49)

1 1/2 cups almond milk ($.70)

1 small onion ($.15)

1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)

1/2 teaspoon pepper (or to taste)

directions

Set
aside a half cup of the peas.

In a blender, puree the rest of the peas, avocado, almond milk, and salt and pepper until very smooth.

I made this for an unexpected get together and ... wow. It may be the
best salad dressing ever ... really! Certainly, it's the best I've had
in recent memory.

Capers are the pickled berries of the caper bush. They're usually
pickled in a salty brine and have a distinctive mustard flavor. They're a
good source of rutin, which strengthens capillaries, and quercetin.
Both are powerful antioxidants. I used a tablespoon of the caper brine
in place of salt ... it adds a bit more of the yummy caper flavor. For
the photo, I used the dressing on an arugula salad with olives, but it
would be suitable with just about any salad.

ingredients

1/3 cup olive oil ($.55)

juice and zest of one lemon ($.60)

3 tablespoons agave ($.60)

1 tablespoon soy sauce or bragg's liquid aminos ($.10)

1 tablespoon dijon mustard ($.05)

2 tablespoons capers ($.50)

1 tablespoon caper brine

2 tablespoons black olives ($.20)

3 cloves garlic ($.05)

Three heads of lettuce or greens (to serve six) will add an additional cost of about $7.00.

directions

in a small bullet type blender, puree all ingredients until smooth ... about a minute.

Serve over lettuce or greens.

nutritional information: calories: 262 fat: 14 gr carb: 8 protein: 4

Dessert

Maple Bacon Ice Cream

serves 2 ~ $1.00 per serving

I recently saw an old advertisement for a maple bacon ice cream from a
fast food place. That seems like the perfect example of what not to eat,
for all kinds of different reasons. But, being a big fan of the sweet
and savory combo, I thought I'd try to see if I could make it vegan ...
and raw. It's basically just a maple zucchini bacon over vanilla banana
ice cream. Super easy.

ingredients

1 zucchini, sliced 1/4" thick ($.70)

2 tablespoons olive oil ($.20)

2 tablespoons maple syrup ($.40)

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar ($.10)

1 small clove garlic

1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

Slice the zucchini into strips about 1/4" thick. In a small bowl, whisk
together the remaining ingredients. Toss with the zucchini until well
coated, then dehydrate for several hours or overnight, until just a
little bit crunchy but pliable.

Tear the zucchini bacon into pieces and serve over vanilla banana ice
cream with maple syrup. To make the ice cream, slice and freeze four
bananas. When ready to use, grind them in a food processor with one
teaspoon vanilla and a splash of almond milk. Process until smooth,
which may take a few minutes and some scraping down on the sides. This
will cost about $.30 per serving.